Home Again
by therealesther
Summary: Sasuke smirked bitterly to himself. The dobe hadn't been the one to bring him back after all.


_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Bully for me._**  
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**Home Again**

When Sasuke woke up in a hospital bed in Konoha, with a tube up his nose, IV drips taped to his wrist, and one leg in a cast, the first thing he noticed was the silence.

All that could be heard in the room was the faint swish and click of the machines beside his bed, and the occasional soft blip of the heart rate monitor. Outside the door, he could faintly hear footsteps tapping along the corridor, sometimes casually walking, but mostly hurrying and indistinct voices, but that was all. Except for himself, the room was empty.

He was alone. There was nobody else. Nobody. And why should there be, he thought. After all, he was a traitor, a murderer; he couldn't expect to have the red carpet thrown out for him. He was lucky the hunter nin had been ordered to take him back alive, or in his weakened, unbalanced state (finally achieving your life's purpose tended to have some emotional backlash), he would certainly have died.

Sasuke couldn't remember any faces amongst those who had brought him back. True they had all worn masks, but still, there had been nothing familiar to latch onto.

_The dobe didn't bring me back after all. _A bitter satisfaction churned in his stomach at the thought.

The room felt very quiet.

_And he's not even here now, gloating over how I finally came back or bragging about how he's going to kick my ass in our next fight. _

The black-haired young man scowled at nothing. A few more minutes passed before the door quietly slid open, to reveal someone very familiar.

Sakura was taller, and looked older, but there was no mistaking her hair colour. The poise and assurance in her movements, the casual confidence in her every look was something completely new however. Her green eyes were cool as they appraised her childhood crush clinically.

"Well well, finally awake? It's been four days since you were brought in. Let's have a look at your chart shall we?" Taking a pen from behind her ear, Sakura scribbled some thing on the clipboard she unhooked from the end of his bed, running her gaze over it quickly.

"Where is he?" Sasuke's voice was little more than a low rasp. He cleared his throat, was about to try again, but Sakura cut him off. There was no need to ask who _he_ was.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun, always so cold. You haven't seen me for about three years and this is the first thing you say?"

Pale fists tightened in the bed sheets, then the shooting pain through his forearms made Sasuke regret the action.

"Where is he?"

A smile touched Sakura's shapely lips. "Somewhere in Stone Country according to his last report, although that came a month ago. He could be anywhere right now."

"When is he coming back?" Why was he asking these questions? He didn't care, he _didn't_. What was this icy cold seeping through him? Why did he feel so lost suddenly, so sickeningly disappointed and let down?

In that moment of realization, the last Uchiha knew why he had come back to this village. All along, there had been only one reason, only one person.

"When? Hm, now there's a good question," the pink-haired girl hooked the clipboard back onto the bed, then tucked the pen into one of the pockets on her brown medic's skirt. She tapped a finger against her lips thoughtfully.

"Well, it's a pretty long mission, like I said he could be anywhere right now," Sasuke jerked suddenly as his battered senses felt a sudden great flare of chakra outside. He stiffened, ears straining, and soon the sounds of some kind of commotion in the halls could be heard.

Then faintly, a voice was heard yelling, "Where is that bastard!? I'm gonna kick his ass!" They both heard it; Sakura smiled and finished her sentence.

"In fact, I was expecting him back today."

There were running feet, and the powerful chakra signature, pulsing strongly, came even closer. The feet stopped outside the door, and Sasuke sat staring at it, unaware that he was shaking. The door slid open roughly, to reveal an orange clad ninja, golden hair rumpled into a spiky mane, and cerulean blue eyes burning bright as they devoured the sight of the black-haired boy. For a moment, Sasuke found he couldn't breathe.

"Naruto."

"He's home," Sakura whispered softly, and at that moment, it didn't matter which boy she was referring to.

_Author's Note: I just really wanted to write a story where Sasuke would come back, and find Naruto NOT there. How would he feel in that situation? This was all I could manage atm, but I'm hoping to write a multi-chapter on that theme when I have more time. What do you think?_


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